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Joseph Blanco White
Joseph Blanco White '(11 July 1775 - 20 May 1841), was a Spanish-born English poet and theologian. Life Overview White was the son of a merchant, an Irish Roman Catholic resident at Seville, where he was born. He became a priest, but lost his religious faith and came to England, where he conducted a Spanish newspaper having for its main object the fanning of the flame of Spanish patriotism against the French invasion, which was subsidized by the English Government. He again embraced Christianity, and entered the Church of England, but latterly became a Unitarian. He wrote, among other works, ''Internal Evidences against Catholicism (1825), and Second Travels of an Irish Gentleman in search of a Religion, in answer to T. Moore's work, Travels, etc. His most permanent contribution to literature, however, is his single sonnet on "Night", which Coleridge considered "the finest and most grandly conceived" in our language.John William Cousin, "White, Joseph Blanco," A Short Biographical Dictionary of English Literature. London: Dent / New York: Dutton, 1910, 404. Wikisource, Web, Mar. 18, 2018. Biography White was born at Seville on the 11th of July 1775. Born '''José María Blanco Crespo, of Irish ancestry, he was the son of the British vice-consul, Guillermo Blanco (alias White), an English merchant who had established himself in Seville during the reign of Fernando VI, and María Gertrudis Crespo y Neve.Joseph Blanco White, Wikipedia, Wikimedia Commons. Web, December 26, 2011. White was educated for the Roman Catholic priesthood but, after his ordination in 1800, religious doubts led him to escape from Spain to England (1810). There he ultimately entered the Anglican Church, having studied theology at Oxford and made the friendship of Thomas Arnold, John Henry Newman and Richard Whately. He became a tutor in Whately's family when Whately became the Archbishop of Dublin in 1831. While in this position White embraced Unitarian views and he found an asylum amongst the Unitarians of Liverpool, where he died on 20 May 1841.Britannica 1911, 28, 600. White edited El Espafwl, a monthly Spanish magazine in London, from 1810 to 1814. Writing His principal writings are Doblado's Letters from Spain (1822); Evidence against Catholicism (1825); Second Travels of an Irish Centkvtan in Search of a Religion (2 volumess, 1834); Observations on Heresy and Orthodoxy (1835). They all show literary ability, and were extensively read in their day. He also translated Paley's Evidences and the Book of Common Prayer into Spanish. White is best remembered, however, for his sonnet "Night and Death" ("Mysterious Night! when our first parent knew"), which was dedicated to Samuel Taylor Coleridge on its appearance in the Bijou for 1828 and has since found its way into several anthologies. 3 versions are given in the Academy of September 12, 1891. Recognition White received a civil list pension of £250. Publications Fiction *''Vargas: A tale of Spain''. (3 volumes), London: Baldwin, Cradock & Joy, 1822. Volume I, Volume II, Volume III. Non-fiction *''Letters from Spain'' (as "Don Leucadio Doblado"). London: Henry Colburn, 1822.Letters from Spain (1822), Internet Archive, July 8, 2013. *''Practical and internal evidence against Catholicism : with occasional strictures on Mr. Butler's Book of the Roman Catholic church ; in six letters, addressed to the impartial among the Roman Catholics of Great Britain and Ireland.London: John Murray, 1826 1825Practical and internal evidence against Catholicism : with occasional strictures on Mr. Butler's Book of the Roman Catholic church ; in six letters, addressed to the impartial among the Roman Catholics of Great Britain and Ireland (1826), Internet Archive, July 8, 2013. *The Poor Man's Preservative Against Popery. London: C. & J. Rivington, 1826.The Poor Man's Preservative Against Popery (1826), Internet Archive, July 8, 2013. *Second Travels of an Irish Gentleman in Search of a Religion. (2 volumes), London: Richard Milliken, 1834.Second Travels of an Irish Gentleman in Search of a Religion (1834), Internet Archive, July 8, 2013. ''Volume I, Volume II. *''Observations on Heresy and Orthodoxy. London: J. Mardon, 1835.Observations on Heresy and Orthodoxy, Internet Archive, July 8, 2013. *''Life of the Rev. Joseph Blanco White, written by himself, with portions of his correspondence (edited by John Hamilton Thom). (3 volumes), London: John Chapman, 1845.Life of the Rev. Joseph Blanco White... (1845), Internet Archive, July 8, 2013. Volume I, Volume II, Volume III. See also * List of British poets References * . Wikisource, Web, Mar. 18, 2018. *Martin Murphy, Blanco White: Self-banished Spaniard,. New Haven, CT: Yale, 1989. Notes External links ;Poems * Selected Poetry of Joseph Blanco White (1775-1841) (1 poem) at Representative Poetry Online. * Joseph Blanco White (1775-1841) at Sonnet Central * Joseph Blanco White at PoemHunter (1 poem) ;About * Joseph Blanco White at Encyclopædia Britannica * Critical and Biographical Essay by Albert Miles *White, Joseph Blanco in the Dictionary of National Biography * Original article is at Joseph Blanco White. ;Etc. *Joseph Blanco White Collection at the University of Liverpool Category:1775 births Category:1841 deaths Category:People from Seville Category:British poets Category:Spanish emigrants to the United Kingdom Category:Alumni of the University of Oxford Category:Converts to Unitarianism Category:Spanish poets Category:Spanish people of Irish descent Category:Spanish Protestants Category:Spanish Unitarians Category:English poets Category:English-language poets Category:19th-century poets Category:Poets